With the government coming out with a roadmap for implementation of new accounting standards, ICAI is focusing on capacity building efforts to meet the challenges with respect to the new norms.

Indian Accounting Standards (Ind AS) have been converged with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and would come into effect on voluntary basis from April, this year, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) said in a statement today.

IndAs will become mandatory from April 1, 2016, it added. As part of its efforts for effective implementation of the new norms, ICAI said it is planning "to gear up its capacity building endeavours in a focused manner".

"The ICAI is planning to hold chain seminars throughout the country with a view to develop the necessary skills and knowledge for smooth and effective implementation of the Ind AS," ICAI President K Raghu said.The institute is planning to bring in education material related to Ind AS as well as hold workshop on January 15, 2015 of companies that have experience of preparing IFRS financial statements, to discuss the first-time adoption issues.

ICAI also plans to launch the Ind AS in the electronic form so that the professionals and others concerned may use the contents of the standards "in a more effective manner".

The government had recently come out with a roadmap for implementation of Ind AS for companies other than banking companies, insurance companies and NBFCs.

Noting that NBFCs and insurance companies are expected to move to Ind AS in next 2-3 years, Raghu said that "over the next few years more and more entities will apply Ind AS on mandatory basis while a few do so on voluntary basis with a view to bring their financial statements at the international level".

"The ICAI has accordingly geared itself on long-term basis to meet the challenges in the implementation of IFRS," Raghu added.

Ind AS would be mandatory for companies whose equity and/or debt securities are listed or are in the process of listing on any stock exchange in India or outside India and having net worth of Rs 500 crore or more, from April 1, 2016.It is estimated, that after the initial phase of Ind AS becoming mandatory from April 1, next year, about 550 listed companies are expected to implement the new norms. The number would be higher if unlisted companies having net worth of more than Rs 500 crore are also covered, ICAI said.

Further number is likely to further increase as all the listed as well as unlisted companies having networth of more than Rs 250 crore would get covered, it added.